Act II is a fast paced tale of how Lady Macbeth and Macbeth arrange the murder of the king, Duncan. Throughout the dialogue, readers can see more examples of some of the focus areas we are tracing (as found in your Act I handout). For this paper, narrow in on one of these categories:
Language: Talk about the imagery or meaning of a line and what the line reveals. Be sure to discuss what this means/predicts/compares to/suggests/symbolizes in the play or time period. (Pick one-not all.)
Masculinity: Identify how the roles of masculinity in the act are challenged, reinforced, or reversed. Be sure to discuss what this means/predicts/compares to/suggests/symbolizes in the play or time period. (Pick one-not all.)
Tragic Flaw: Identify how one of the character's character flaw is exposed and what this reveal does for the conflict of the play. Be sure to discuss what this means/predicts/compares to/suggests/symbolizes in the play or time period.
Dramatic Irony: Discuss how the audience and a character in the play interpret a particular line differently because the audience 'knows' more than the ignorant character. What effect does that have on the audience or movement of the play?
Tips for Writing This Paper:
1. DO NOT SUMMARIZE. If you spend your paper summarizing, you will fail. Instead, draw attention to a particular scene (identify play and Act) ONLY to use it as a starting point and then use the majority of your paper to talk about the 'so what' or meaning of that small area of the act. Remember, you are writing to someone who has read the play, so your paper is just showing them how they should view this particular part of the play differently.
2. Paper should quickly move to thesis after a brief intro (see number one tip above). Example Thesis: -Macbeth's creates a hallucination to encourage himself to kill Duncan. -Lady Macbeth's belief that "a little water will wash us of these deeds" demonstrates that she feels no remorse for what they've done.
3. In a research paper, you need research. In an analysis paper, you NEED QUOTES. These quotes can be part or whole but must be blended in with your analysis. Use page numbers in parenthesis immediately after the quotation closes. Support yourself with quotes, not opinions.
4. You earn NO points for pointing out the obvious (POO) so make sure that you spend the majority of your paper doing one of these skills: Comparing between two points. Showing change. Showing significance. Explaining how this contributes to the conflict or complexity of the situation. Showing how this scene relates to the beliefs of the time period. Suggesting what Shakespeare was intending to do in this scene. Proving a previous claim true or false. Discrediting someone believed credible. Oh, there are so many more but let's try these first...
1 page min/max-no cover page needed-22 lines, TNR, double spaced, Original Title Outline needed (no bib) Do NOT use I, me, you, got, good, bad, etc or any other words that are so lame that you should be ashamed of yourself for using.
Want an A?
Use adverbial conjunctions...correctly.
Use higher lever SAT vocabulary words. Multi-syllabic words can often help you save wordiness and space when used correctly. Click Here for SAT vocab lists.
Macbeth Act II
Act II is a fast paced tale of how Lady Macbeth and Macbeth arrange the murder of the king, Duncan. Throughout the dialogue, readers can see more examples of some of the focus areas we are tracing (as found in your Act I handout). For this paper, narrow in on one of these categories:
Language: Talk about the imagery or meaning of a line and what the line reveals. Be sure to discuss what this means/predicts/compares to/suggests/symbolizes in the play or time period. (Pick one-not all.)
Masculinity: Identify how the roles of masculinity in the act are challenged, reinforced, or reversed. Be sure to discuss what this means/predicts/compares to/suggests/symbolizes in the play or time period. (Pick one-not all.)
Tragic Flaw: Identify how one of the character's character flaw is exposed and what this reveal does for the conflict of the play. Be sure to discuss what this means/predicts/compares to/suggests/symbolizes in the play or time period.
Dramatic Irony: Discuss how the audience and a character in the play interpret a particular line differently because the audience 'knows' more than the ignorant character. What effect does that have on the audience or movement of the play?
Tips for Writing This Paper:
1. DO NOT SUMMARIZE. If you spend your paper summarizing, you will fail. Instead, draw attention to a particular scene (identify play and Act) ONLY to use it as a starting point and then use the majority of your paper to talk about the 'so what' or meaning of that small area of the act. Remember, you are writing to someone who has read the play, so your paper is just showing them how they should view this particular part of the play differently.
2. Paper should quickly move to thesis after a brief intro (see number one tip above).
Example Thesis:
-Macbeth's creates a hallucination to encourage himself to kill Duncan.
-Lady Macbeth's belief that "a little water will wash us of these deeds" demonstrates that she feels no remorse for what they've done.
3. In a research paper, you need research. In an analysis paper, you NEED QUOTES. These quotes can be part or whole but must be blended in with your analysis. Use page numbers in parenthesis immediately after the quotation closes. Support yourself with quotes, not opinions.
4. You earn NO points for pointing out the obvious (POO) so make sure that you spend the majority of your paper doing one of these skills:
Comparing between two points.
Showing change.
Showing significance.
Explaining how this contributes to the conflict or complexity of the situation.
Showing how this scene relates to the beliefs of the time period.
Suggesting what Shakespeare was intending to do in this scene.
Proving a previous claim true or false.
Discrediting someone believed credible.
Oh, there are so many more but let's try these first...
1 page min/max-no cover page needed-22 lines, TNR, double spaced, Original Title
Outline needed (no bib)
Do NOT use I, me, you, got, good, bad, etc or any other words that are so lame that you should be ashamed of yourself for using.
Want an A?
Use adverbial conjunctions...correctly.
Use higher lever SAT vocabulary words. Multi-syllabic words can often help you save wordiness and space when used correctly.
Click Here for SAT vocab lists.